Many sports utilize a small diameter round ball in the performance of the sporting event. Practice for the sporting event typically utilized a large number of the small diameter round balls to keep the practice session moving smoothly. When the practice session is completed, these balls are typically scattered over the practice area and require retrieval. For example, baseball and softball teams typically utilize dozens of balls during practice, particularly during batting practice. Even when batting practice is conducted with the batter hitting balls into a net, a substantial number of balls are used. Similarly, tennis, field hockey, golf and lacrosse, whether practice is for individual players or teams, utilize a substantial number of small diameter balls. Golf is another sport activity that utilizes a significant number of balls during practice.
A number of retrieving devices have been devised to facilitate the retrieval of loose, small diameter balls. Substantially all of these devices utilize a tubular storage chamber to store a supply of the balls that have been retrieved and a gateway mechanism at one end of the tubular storage chamber that is engaged by the ball being retrieved and allows the ball to pass the mechanism to enter the tubular storage chamber, yet be retained by the mechanism within the tubular storage chamber once the ball has passed by the mechanism. Also common in the prior art ball retrieving devices is that the gateway mechanism must pass beneath the maximum diameter of the ball being loaded into the storage chamber before the ball is completely pressed into the ball retrieving device.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,760,807, granted on Aug. 28, 1956, to William Watson, the mechanism at the end of the tubular storage chamber is formed as deformable lips that deflect inwardly to allow the ball to pass into the tubular storage chamber and then deflect back into the normal position once the ball has passed into the chamber. The deformable lips are not arranged to deflect downwardly, only inwardly and upwardly; therefore, the balls retained in the storage chamber cannot pass the deformable lips to exit the chamber. Similarly operable yieldable strips are utilized as the gateway mechanism in the device for picking up baseballs disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. D580,999, granted on Nov. 18, 2008, to Joseph Mitchell, and also in the device for picking up golf balls in U.S. Pat. No. 7,165,796, granted on Jan. 23, 2007, to Shao-Fu Hung.
The gateway mechanism disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,058,336, issued to Sydney Parkinson on Nov. 18, 1977, is a pivoted cam finger connected to an actuation pawl. When the loading end of the tubular storage chamber is placed over a ball to be retrieved, the cam finger pivots upwardly to allow the curved, small diameter ball to pass into the storage chamber. Once the maximum diameter of the ball is passed by the cam finger, a resilient strap passing around the tubular apparatus and engaged with the cam finger pivots the cam finger back into the interior of the tubular apparatus to prevent the retrieved ball now within the storage chamber from exiting the storage chamber. The actuation pawl is integrally formed with the cam finger and can be manually operated to force the cam finger to pivot back out of the interior of the tubular member against the biasing force exerted by the resilient strap to permit one or more balls, as desired, to be removed from the storage chamber as long as the cam finger is manually retracted.
The ball retrieval storage and discharge device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,751, issued to Ryan Nelson on Jul. 7, 1998, utilizes a plurality of circumferentially spaced spheres retained in openings formed in the interior of the tubular storage member. An outer collar is mounted on the exterior surface of the tubular storage member in alignment with the circumferentially spaced array of spheres retained in the tubular storage member. The outer collar is formed on the interior surface against the exterior surface of the tubular member with a plurality of flat sides meeting at interior angles. The collar is rotatable on the exterior surface of the tubular storage member such that the spheres can be aligned with either the sides or the interior angles between the flat sides. When aligned with the flat sides, the spheres are forced against the openings formed in the interior surface of the tubular storage member to project into the interior of the tubular storage member and, thus, reducing the effective diameter of the tubular storage member and, thereby, retaining balls within the tubular storage member. Once the collar is rotated so that the spheres are aligned with the interior angles, the spheres have enough room to retract from the interior of the tubular storage member by the weight of the ball or balls stored therein and, thereby, allow the discharge of stored balls out of the device.
The devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,235 granted to Dewitt Logue on Dec. 16, 1986, and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,188,410 granted to Michael Summers on Feb. 23, 1993, rely on the ball to be deformable for proper operation. In these patents, the inlet throat of the tubular storage chamber is restricted in diameter in a fixed manner. Forcing the restricted diameter onto a deformable ball, such as a tennis ball, causes the ball to deform and pass into the tubular storage chamber above the restricted diameter and be retained therein by the restricted diameter since there is insufficient force from the mere weight of the ball or balls within the tubular storage chamber to cause deformation of the lowermost ball. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,188,410, the restricted diameter is formed by a reduced diameter ring, while in U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,235, the diameter restriction is provided by a plurality of projections affixed to the interior of the tubular storage chamber.
Another form of a gateway mechanism is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,412,897, issued on Nov. 26, 1968, to Charles Slater, and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,510, issued on Apr. 9, 1996, to James Duncan, as a circumferentially arranged plurality of yieldable fingers forming a restricted opening at the loading end of the tubular storage chamber. The fingers deflect radially outwardly when the curved ends of the fingers are pressed onto a round, small diameter ball to expand the diameter of the opening to allow the passage of the ball into the tubular storage chamber. Once the maximum diameter of the ball has passed the curved ends of the yieldable fingers, the fingers retract to the original restricted opening position, thus retaining the ball or balls within the tubular storage chamber above the fingers. Discharge of the collected balls is accomplished through the opposing end of the tubular storage chamber, which can either be open or closed by a removable cap.
The plurality of yieldable fingers to form the gateway mechanism for a ball retriever device is also deployed in U.S. Pat. No. D606,603, granted on Dec. 22, 2009, to Michael Compton, and in U.S. Pat. No. 2,207,546, granted on Jan. 14, 1936, to Ian Macdonald. In U.S. Pat. No. 2,027,546, the yieldable fingers are similar in function to the yieldable fingers disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,412,897 and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,510, except that the fingers in U.S. Pat. No. 2,027,546 are affixed to the outside of the tubular storage chamber and project into the interior of the chamber through openings at the bottom of the chamber. The curved ends of the yieldable fingers are forced outwardly pushing the fingers away from the tubular storage chamber when forced onto a round, small diameter ball. The fingers deflect back into chamber as the ball passes the curved ends of the fingers.
In U.S. Pat. No. D606,603, the fingers are formed as part of a ring mounted on the outside of the tubular storage chamber and are wrapped around the distal end of the tubular storage such that only the curved ends are located interiorly of the chamber. When forced onto a round, small diameter ball, the curved ends deflect against the interior surface of the tubular storage chamber to allow the passage of a baseball. Once the maximum diameter of the baseball has passed the ends of the fingers, the curved ends deflect inwardly to trap the collected ball within the tubular storage chamber.
The primary disadvantage of each of these prior art ball retrieval devices is the force required to deflect the gateway mechanism to allow the passage of a small diameter ball into the interior of the tubular storage chamber. The amount of force needed to deflect the curved finger ends of the apparatus shown in U.S. Pat. No. D606,603, which is commercially available, is a significant disadvantage. In addition, the design of the curved fingers in D606,603 has an inherent stress fracturing area at the curved radius where the fingers project into the opening of the tubular storage area. With the flexing of the curved fingers necessary for the passage of a baseball into the tubular storage area, the curved fingers, even though formed of spring steel, will yield and break at this curved radius.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a ball retrieving apparatus that would improve the ease of retrieving balls from the practice area. It would also be desirable to provide a spring-loaded retention mechanism for retaining a column of retrieved balls within the tubular storage area while providing a gateway mechanism that is easily operable.